Ethereum Structure

Assumes: Blockchain Structure

Ethereum is a unique blockchain compared to many of those that came before it. It introduced, on a large scale, the concept of smart contracts. In this section, we will go over the functionality of smart contracts and how on the macro scale, Ethereum differs from blockchains that came before it.

Dan's Intro to How Ethereum Works - MetaMask, 2017 [11 min video]

This video given by Dan Finlay of MetaMask will give a recap of Blockchain Structure and then at a high level introduce the concept of smart contracts and some of the features of Ethereum.

An Introduction to Ethereum and Smart Contracts: a Programmable Blockchain - Auth0, 2017 [40 min read]

This article by Sebastián Peyrott of Auth0 delves deeper into the functionality of Ethereum and what its Turing-complete smart contract VM allows for.

Optional Content:

RLP: Recursive Length Prefix - Ethereum Wiki, 2014 [2 min read]

In Ethereum, Recursive Length Prefix (RLP) is the primary encoding method for serializing objects in Ethereum. Read this section from the Ethereum wiki to learn about how RLP encoding works.